The present invention relates generally to compositions which can disperse rapidly in liquid and a process for making the composition, and more particularly a clump-free powder composition which mixes readily and uniformly in water or other liquids, and to a process of making such powder compositions.
Various liquid soluble or dispersible powder products exist which are suitable for human consumption. Examples of such products include, among others, medications, flavoring agents, functional food products such as vitamin and nutrient supplements, and beverage products. Such products also facilitate efficient absorption in the body of associated ingredients, when first dissolved in liquid prior to consumption. Palatability of such products may be easily enhanced by combining the products with flavorings, sweeteners, or effervescent agents. Powder products are much easier and cheaper to handle, ship and store compared with liquid-containing products, and are also less perishable. Typically, all that is required prior to use or consumption is rehydration, for example.
Powder products especially those composed of fine particles or particulates, often resist wetting due to their inherently dry nature. As such, they can be difficult to disperse or dissolve in water or other liquids. The powder particles have a tendency to clump or agglomerate which further diminishes the product""s dispersibility. One type of powder product of particular concern that is especially prone to this problem is powder bulk laxatives. Such bulk laxatives are composed of bulking agents including, but not limited to dietary bulk fibers, husks of grains, psyllium powder, cellulose derivatives, cellulose ethers such as carboxymethylcellulose and methyl cellulose, polysaccharide-based materials, and the like. The laxative properties of these bulking agents are due largely in part to their hydrophilic properties and to their mucilaginous character when wetted. Such materials relieve constipation by increasing the bulk and moisture content of the stool, and promoting a lubricating effect on the stool. The most commonly available bulking agents are psyllium and methyl cellulose.
Due to the same laxative properties of such products, powder bulk laxatives inherently have especially poor wetting capability, and must be vigorously mixed with water for a considerable amount of time to produce a somewhat palatable and relatively uniform drink. The numerous individual particles tend to agglomerate or clump when in contact with water. Hydration takes place over the surface of such agglomerates to form gel-coated clumps, the interiors of which are still substantially dry, and these clumps are difficult to disperse. The effects are further aggravated by the tendency of such clumps to float on the surface of the water leading to further agglomeration. The resulting taste, appearance and organoleptic properties including texture and mouthfeel of such partially dissolved suspensions are often unacceptable to many users. The poor dispersibility or mixability of powder bulk laxatives becomes more pronounced at cooler temperatures.
One prior attempt at alleviating the problems described above has been to admix the bulking agents with high weight percentage amounts of sugar (typically about 50-80 percent weight of the total composition) or encrust each particle with a sugar layer. Another prior attempt at preventing clumps uses a spray-dry process, more specifically mixing psyllium powder with a solution containing a sugar such as maltodextrin. The wetted powder is then dried through a heating process. Although taste and dispersibility are improved in such products, the addition of a sugar may be problematic. For example, those suffering from blood sugar disorders, including diabetics and/or users who are on restricted diets may have difficulty taking such high sugar powder bulk laxative. In addition, considerable time and mixing is still required for complete clump-free dispersion. The cost of raw materials, storage, and processing is also significantly higher for sugar-added compositions.
Accordingly, it would be highly desirable to provide an edible powder composition including those comprising powder bulking agents, in which the composition when mixed in liquid is palatable, has desirable organoleptic properties and which may be administered without significant clumping. It would be desirable to implement a simple and safe process of making such compositions readily dispersible in a cost efficient manner with minimal processing requirements. It would be advantageous to implement a process which reduces the amount of raw material required, thus reducing the weight and volume of the resulting edible powder composition and the associated costs of processing, packaging, shipping and storage.
The present invention generally relates to a powder composition that disperses readily and uniformly in a given liquid without clumping. The composition particularly comprises an edible or non-edible powder coated uniformly throughout with an amount of a surfactant sufficient to uniformly disperse the powder in the liquid. A further aspect of the invention provides a process for making the edible powder composition which comprises the step of continuously mixing particles of the edible powder with an amount of a surfactant for a time sufficient to uniformly coat substantially all of the edible powder with the surfactant. As used herein the term xe2x80x9cuniformly coatedxe2x80x9d shall mean that at least a substantial number of the particles are at least substantially coated with the surfactant.
In one aspect of the present invention there is provided a process for making a powder bulk laxative composition that disperses readily in water without clumping. The process comprises the step of continuously mixing a bulking agent mixture with effective amount of a surfactant for a sufficient time to uniformly coat at least substantially all the particles of the powdered bulking agent mixture with the surfactant.
In another aspect, the present invention is directed a powder laxative composition that disperses readily and uniformly in water without clumping. However, the invention is not meant to be limited to powder laxative compositions, or edible powders, and may be used to provide and make liquid dispersible non-edible powders.
The present invention is generally directed to powder composition which disperses readily in a liquid, and a process of making such compositions. The composition advantageously disperses in the water or other liquid in a uniform manner. The process of the present invention is especially directed to processing any edible powder product suitable for mixing in water or other liquids including beverage powders, milk powders, food additives, flavoring agents, pharmaceutical agents, coloring agents, soup mixes, preservatives, and the like.
The present invention is directed to a powder composition that disperses readily in a liquid without clumping, wherein in the examples given below, the composition comprises an edible powder, having particles uniformly coated with an effective amount of a surfactant.
The present invention is further directed to a process for making an edible powder composition that disperse readily in a liquid without clumping wherein the process comprises the step of continuously mixing edible or non-edible powder particles with an amount of a surfactant for a time sufficient to uniformly coat at least substantially all of the powder with the surfactant.